EARTH WIND & FIRE THE BEST OF ORIG '80 MASTERSOUND ½SPEED MASTERED AUDIOPHILE LP

$

31

WE CURRENTLY HAVE  NEARLY 200  LISTED ITEMS

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·       EARTH, WIND AND FIRE – THE BEST OF EARTH, WIND AND FIRE, VOL.1  - HALF-SPEED MASTERED, ANALOG, AUDIOPHILE, EXTENDED DYNAMIC RANGE VIRGIN VINYL, 'MASTERSOUND' COLUMBIA RECORDS LP HC-45647.

·       ORIGINAL U.S. PRESSING

·       ORIGINAL RED AND YELLOW COLUMBIA LABEL WITH WHITE MASTERSOUND LOGO AND 'ARC' (EARTH WIND & FIRE PROPRIETARY RECORDING IMPRINT) LOGO SUPERIMPOSED ON THE LABELS

·       THIS IS THE ORIGINAL, AUTHENTIC, FIRST U.S. AUDIOPHILE PRESSING; THIS IS NOT A REISSUE, AN IMPORT, OR A COUNTERFEIT PRESSING.

·       ORIGINAL GATEFOLD COVER

·       CLEAN, WEAR-FREE LABELS

·       MACHINE-STAMPED MATRIX NUMBER IN TRAIL-OFF VINYL (DEAD WAX) OF THE RECORD

·       FAIRLY THICK VINYL PRESSING On the scale from 1 to 10 (1 being the least thick, and  10 being the thickest), we assess the thickness of the vinyl as 7.

·       MATRIX NUMBER IN TRAIL-OFF VINYL (DEAD WAX) ENDS WITH '-2F/-2K'

(►PLEASE SEE THE IMAGE OF THE COVER, LABEL OR BOTH, SHOWN BELOW)

(Note: this is a REAL image of the ACTUAL item you are bidding on. This is NOT a "recycled" image from our previous auction. What you see is what you’ll get.  GUARANTEED!)

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When it was originally released in 1978, The Best of Earth, Wind & Fire, Vol. 1 was a succinct, ten-track collection of the group's best and biggest singles up to that point. There was one brand-new song, the excellent "September," which soon became a hit in its own right, plus the non-LP Beatles cover "Got to Get You Into My Life," which was recorded for the Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band film, makes its first appearance on an EWF album here. EWF's commercial prime hadn't yet ended when this collection appeared; thus, it's missing several crucial latter-day hits, including the slinky funk of "Serpentine Fire," the ballad "After the Love Has Gone," and the disco smashes "Let's Groove" and "Boogie Wonderland." But even if it's an incomplete hits collection, The Best of Earth, Wind & Fire, Vol. 1 still ranks as a strong encapsulation of EWF the funk innovators. The singles gathered here constitute some of the richest, most sophisticated music the funk movement ever produced; when the absolute cream of the group's catalog is heard in such a concentrated fashion, the effect is dazzling. That's why The Best of Earth, Wind & Fire, Vol. 1 was remastered and reissued along with the rest of EWF's catalog, even though it's been supplanted by more extensive single-disc (Greatest Hits), double-disc (The Essential Earth, Wind & Fire), and triple-disc (The Eternal Dance) anthologies. 1998's Greatest Hits now stands as the definitive single-disc EWF overview, but for the budget-minded and the disco-phobic, this still makes for an excellent listen.

 (EXCERPT FROM AN ONLINE REVIEW BY STEVE HUEY, ALL MUSIC GUIDE  /ALLMUSIC.COM/)

The Columbia Records' Mastersound half-speed audiophile vinyl pressings of the late 1970's and early 1980's (and there was only a handful of those) were not only audiophile and connoisseur masterpieces, they have become true pieces of audio history and its lore. These majestic recordings received an intense, meticulous and laborious treatment like very few other recordings in the entire history of the recorded sound. They are characterized by the massively extended dynamic and frequency range, mastering from the very first generation of original master tapes, almost compulsive attention paid to the detail and integrity of the pressing, the highest quality of the material and near-maniacal attention paid to the fine sonic detail and audio craftsmanship. To this day, many of these recordings remain unsurpassed, delivering music reproduction as close to the actual recording session as possible, without any loss of musical information inherent in the standard ! practice of mastering from the inferior "production" copies. PLEASE NOTE: THESE RECORDINGS HAVE BEEN DRAMATICALLY ESCALATING IN VALUE AND DEMAND. ADDITIONAL FACTOR IN INCREASED DEMAND FOR THESE GORGEOUS RECORDINGS IS THE FACT THAT ALL OF THEM WERE LIMITED-NUMBER PRESSINGS, AND THAT SOME OF THEM WERE INSANELY HARD TO FIND EVEN WHILE THE MASTERSOUND SERIES WAS STILL IN PRINT. This is one of the rare opportunities to acquire this great album in its true, original, primordial audio format., no longer in print, and no longer easily obtainable. In the best tradition of Mastersound, the sound quality is truly extraordinary - much better, actually, than the original vinyl version of this album. A stunning, jaw -dropping, mouth-watering audiophile experience, not to be missed.

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·       CONDITION:

·       THE RECORD:

 (IMPORTANT NOTE: unless otherwise noted, ALL records are graded visually, and NOT play-graded!; we  grade records under the strong, diffuse room light or discrete sunlight)

(a)          WE GRADE THE VINYL AS STRONG NEAR MINT. The original luster is very much intact, and the vinyl shines and sparkles almost like new.

(b)          The record is pressed on a RELATIVELY  thick, inflexible vinyl. This is NOT a thin, flimsy ('dynaflex' type),  vinyl, but not the thickest, most rigid vinyl, either.

(c)           All mastersound titles are pressed on a beautiful, high-quality, virgin-grade vinyl, which is usually used for audiophile, extended-dynamic-range, half-speed mastered and connoisseur pressings.

(d)          The album comes with its original mastersound 4-page insert

(e)           The record comes in a hi-grade MFSL PVC inner sleeve, which has - apparently with success - shielded the record from the harmful impact of elements over many years!

(f)            Of course, this is a full-bodied ANALOG recording, and not an inferior, digital recording!!!

·                               THE COVER

THE COVER IS NICE --- ABOUT EXCELLENT OR VERY GOOD++ (VG++).

The following flaws or imperfections are noted on the cover:

-        Cover has a few tiny wrinkles along the spine  (nothing significant)

-        Visible shelf wear noted on the bottom seams, opening side and spine

-        Cover has JUST A HINT of ring wear (nothing significant); On the scale from 1 to 10 (1 being the least, and  10 being the most severe), we assess the severity of ring wear as 2.

NO OTHER VISIBLE FLAWS OR IMPERFECTIONS ON THE  COVER

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POSTAGE & SHIPPING:

We offer THREE postage rates for both Domestic and International Mail: Media Mail, Priority Mail and Express Mail for domestic, and First Class, Priority International Mail, and Express International Mail for international orders. INTERNATIONAL CUSTOMERS PLEASE NOTE: WE RECOMMEND that you pay for USPS International Priority Mail OR International Express mail when making a payment in order to obtain tracking information, which is NOT available for First Class International shipments.

INTERNATIONAL POSTAGE rates vary from country to country. For SPECIFIC international and domestic postage rates ►click here. While you can be rest assured that ►our packaging is careful, sturdy and impact-proof, please note that damage, loss or theft in transit is always possible, and in the case of some countries even PROBABLE. To discuss this potential problem and ensure flawless delivery, please contact us thru eBay BEFORE placing a bid.

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WE OFFER UNCONDITIONAL MONEY-BACK GUARANTEE WITHIN 30 DAYS FROM THE RECEIPT OF THE MERCHANDISE, NO QUESTIONS ASKED; Still sealed items MUST be returned sealed in order to be eligible for a refund Some restrictions apply. Please read our complete refund policy before placing a bid. ►Click here  for the full text of our policy

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